Meleagros setulosus, Gildenkov, 2020

Fedorenko, D. N., 2020, New species of Meleagros and Tarsagonum (Coleoptera: Carabidae: Platynini) from the Oriental region, Russian Entomological Journal 29 (2), pp. 139-147 : 144

Meleagros setulosus Fedorenko, sp.n.

Fig. 3 .

MATERIAL. Holotype ♀ ( ZMMU): ‘ Vietnam, prov[ince]. Ha Tinh, Vu Quang (Phu Quon) [Nature] reserve, h~ 1.200 m, 5– 26.VIII.1997, leg. M. Kalyakin’.

DESCRIPTION. Similar to M. laticeps sp.n. except as follows: BL 11.6 mm. Body ( Fig. 3 ) shiny, bright violaceous, abdomen and legs black, femora with faint violaceous tinge; protrochanters, palps, scape condyle, and antennomeres 5– 11 along edges reddish; abdominal sternite VII yellow in apical third. Head and pronotum without microsculpture; elytral microsculpture very superficial, consisting of barely transverse to isodiametric meshes. Underside, coxae, trochanters and femoral bases, rather densely ciliate; dorsal pilosity extremely short and very sparse, just traceable along sides of both vertex and pronotum (mostly in basal half) and on elytral disc, more distinct along sides toward elytral apices.

Head smaller, HnW/OL 2.28, genae two thirds as long as eyes, GL/OL 0.65. Frontal foveae posteriorly extended into very shallow striae reaching the level of eye midlength. Frons medially smooth. Labrum slightly asymmetric, with right angle subacute and slightly in advance of rectangular left angle.

Pronotum smaller, PW/PL 1.24, PW/HW 1.23, PLw/PL 0.39, PB/PA 1.08; base barely convex, slightly sinuate at a distance from pointed right basal angles; apex barely sinuate. Sides sinuate just before slightly obtuse lateral angles, evenly sinuate behind, slightly diverging in basal fifth, with a vague blunt tooth just behind lateral angle. Apical angles adherent to neck, right, with extreme tips only projecting. Basal bead obsolete just medially. Explanate lateral margin slightly less wide, behind lateral angle in form of a slightly broadened lateral bead. Median line deep, reaching base and almost reaching apex. Basal transverse impression transverse, interrupted medially. Forward extensions of basal foveae disappearing two thirds from base. Sides, including basal foveae, lateral groove and base just inside, finely and densely punctate and slightly cross-striated in basal two thirds.

Elytra oval, broadest three fifths from base, nearly semicircular behind, EL/EW 1.50, EW/PW 1.73, with preapical sinuation less oblique and apices rather widely rounded. Striae slightly deeper, crenulate rather than punctate; intervals very convex laterally and apically; interval 8 almost carinate apically. USS: 19–20.

Underside: Prosternal process impressed inside a Ushaped marginal bead.

Legs: tarsi flat and wide, pro- and mesotarsi barely wider than metatarsi; protarsi finely tetracarinate due to median carina wide and deeply grooved; median carina broadened slightly apicad and faintly grooved on mesotarsomeres 1–4; metatarsomeres 1–4 tricarinate. Profemur with 1+2 anterior setae and 1+2 posterior medioventral setae.

Female gonocoxite with 4–5 ventral ensiform setae.

DIAGNOSIS. The new species is very similar to M. coeruleus in many points, including body shape and proportions. Both share distinctly setulose ventral body integuments, moderately large head, tetracarinate protarsi, small pronotum, with explanate lateral margin almost reduced to the lateral bead, and a very slightly asymmetric labrum. Differences only include about isodiametric elytral microsculpture (vs. transverse in that species) and US being hardly more in number, 19–20 vs. 17–18. Morvan’s illustrations [ Morvan, 2004: Figs 3 and 26] shows also that the female paratype of M. coeruleus has the eyes a bit larger, more than half as long as the neck wide, and the mentum tooth rounded apically (vs. bifid, with apical teeth rounded), but the latter difference may have come from individual variability.

NAME. Refers to the ventrally setulose body.

GEOGRAPHIC DISTRIBUTION. Known from the type locality only.

Figures

Figs 1–3. Dorsal habitus of holotypes: 1 — Meleagros laticeps sp.n.; 2 — M. pseudosinicola sp.n.; 3 –– M. setulosus sp.n. Рис. 1–3. Габитус голотипов, дорЗально: 1 — Meleagros laticeps sp.n.; 2 — M. pseudosinicola sp.n.; 3 –– M. setulosus sp.n.